Former US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer has been asked to return to the position in the coming Trump Administration reboot, according to reports in the Financial Times. A former attorney for domestic steelmakers, Lighthizer recently wrote in the Wall Street Journal  that a return to the mercantilist policies of the 19th centrury are appropriate for today:

amestown Foundation released a report detailing how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has repurposed Meta’s “Llama” model—an open-source AI tool originally developed to …

OFAC imposied sanctions today on one entity and one individual that form part of Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik’s patronage network.  The U.S. government previously designated President Dodik for using his official position to accumulate personal wealth through companies connected to himself and his son, Igor Dodik. 

Canada has issued an order mandating TikTok Technology Canada, the Canadian arm of TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance Ltd., to dissolve its operations in the country. In a formal statement, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, cited a “multi-step national security review” conducted with the input of Canada’s national security and intelligence community as the basis for the decision.

Fast moving regulatory changes call for timely updates. As your November print edition is being processed, please see what's coming. Any trouble accessing your account, please email info@traderegs.com or call SMS 703.283.5220

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) continues to aggressively utilize and expand its authority to address national security risks related to foreign investment into the United States.

The regulators responsible for drafting the biggest rulemaking changes to space-related export controls briefed stakeholders on the initiative,, addressed some initial questions, and urged engagement through comments as the rules are finalized. The November 6 presentation included officials from the State Department, Commerce and NASA who shared their perspectives on their remits. The event finished with a review of some questions submitted by stakeholders.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul sent a letter to Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Alan Estevez expressing his frustration regarding the Bureau of Industry and Security’s (BIS) "overall aversion to enforcing export controls against China’s semiconductor industry, including Huawei and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC)." "It is irreconcilable that only SMIC’s most advanced production line (SMIC South) has a presumption of denial licensing policy, whereas the rest of its corporate network faces little to no restrictions."

Congressman John Moolenaar called on the Commerce Department to apply the "special rules for costs" in evaluating imports of Epoxy resin from China that compete with Dow Chemical. "Special rules"  empower Commerce to adjust reported costs submitted by foreign producers and counter overcapacity and market distortion when they occur in the American economy.

A Virginia freight forwarding firm and two executives have been charged with operating a technology transshipment service for Russian customers, routing shipments through Turkie, Finland and Kazakhstan to evade export controls. “This company allegedly used not one, not two, but three different schemes to illegally transship sensitive American technology to Russia,” said Assistant Secretary for the Department of Commerce Export Enforcement, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Matthew S. Axelrod

The Genomic & Genetic Technologies Trade Mission to Greece, Turkiye, and Italy will be taking place May 19-23, 2025. Following the conclusion of the mission in Italy, companies may choose to attend or exhibit at the European Society of Human Genetic Conference (ESHG), which will take place in Milan May 24-27, 2025.

The Treasury Department on Friday issued a final rule that significantly expands the ability of the inter-agency Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to review certain real estate transactions by foreign persons near more than 60 military bases and installations across 30 states.

Magi planning their holiday gift-giving may have to reconsider choices in light of a recent CBP finding of forced labor in the Frankinsense trade. Effective November 1, 2024, U.S. Customs and …

The U.S. Census Bureau has issued a proposed rule to amend regulations governing export reporting requirements, with an emphasis on clarifying procedures for in-transit shipments, the role of the U.S. Principal Party in Interest (USPPI), and the responsibilities of customs brokers.

In January the Defense Department released the National Defense Industrial Strategy, a first-of-its kind roadmap detailing priorities for how the department would strengthen the defense industrial base — the collection of private sector companies of all sizes responsible for building military hardware and weapons systems.  This week, the department released the National Defense Industrial Strategy Implementation Plan, or NDIS-IP. The plan provides the details for how the goals set forth in the NDIS-IP can be achieved and mitigate risks to the department in the near, medium and long term. 

The Transportation and Related Equipment Technical Advisory Committee will meet on November 13, 2024, 9:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, in the Herbert C. Hoover Building, Room 3884, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC The open session will be accessible via teleconference. To join the conference, submit inquiries to Ms. Patricia Muldonian at PatriciaMuldonian@bis.doc.gov.

A federal grand jury in Boston indicted a citizen of the People’s Republic of China for allegedly stealing trade secrets from his employer, a global investment management firm, while working in Massachusetts in 2021. Xiao Zhang, 33, of Shanghai, China, was indicted on one count of theft of trade secrets. Zhang currently remains at large overseas.

On Wednesday, November 6, the Department of Commerce (DOC) will host a public meeting to discuss the four space export control rulemakings released by DOC and the State Department on October 17, 2024. The meeting will feature speakers from the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), and DOC’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). …

Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) recently finalized a transaction under its Project & Structured Finance Program to support Connecticut-based exporter FuelCell Energy Inc. The transaction is a loan guarantee of almost $10 million that will support the financing of fuel cell modules that will replace existing fuel cell modules at the Hwaseong Baran Industrial Complex in South Korea, the world's largest fuel cell platform.

The US Commercial service will be conducting a series of Export Compliance workshops in the coming months, visiting Tampa, Charlotte, Connecticut, Phoenix and Salt Lake City.